Geoffrey Owens, the actor who played Elvin on "The Cosby Show," is speaking up after being called out for bagging groceries at Trader Joe's.
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Geoffrey Owens paired his Trader Joe's name tag with a ball cap from his alma mater, Yale, for his Tuesday interview on 'Good Morning America,' where he said working a day job is nothing to be ashamed of.(Photo: Paula Lobo/ABC)

Actor Geoffrey Owens' return to the limelight after being job-shamed for working at a Trader Joe's has resulted in a job offer.

Tyler Perry offered the 57-year-old actor, who once played Bill Cosby's son-in-law Elvin on "The Cosby Show," a gig on the Oprah Winfrey Network days after pictures of Owens working at the supermarket in Clifton, New Jersey, went viral.

"#GeoffreyOwens I’m about to start shootings OWN’s number one drama next week," Perry announced on Twitter Tuesday, referring to “The Haves and the Have Nots.” "Come join us!!! I have so much respect for people who hustle between gigs. The measure of a true artist."

#GeoffreyOwens I’m about to start shootings OWN’s number one drama next week! Come join us!!! I have so much respect for people who hustle between gigs. The measure of a true artist.

Appearing on "Good Morning America" Tuesday, Owens explained to anchor Robin Roberts he decided to work at Trader Joe's, where he's been employed for about 15 months, after being unable to make ends meet. He wore his red store badge during the interview.

“I’d been teaching, acting, directing for 30+ years, but it got to a point where it just didn’t add up enough and you gotta do what you got to do," he shared, adding the job offered "flexibility," so he could "try to stay in the business."

"I didn’t advertise that I was at Trader Joe’s," he added, "not that I was ashamed of it, but because I didn’t want the entertainment community to kind of decide, 'Well, he's doing that; he’s not pursuing acting anymore.' I felt like I had to be careful about that."

Owens said he felt the reports about his workplace were in fact attempts at job-shaming, but said the disappointment didn't last long due to the outpouring of support he's received from celebrities like Terry Crews, Blair Underwood and Pamela Adlon.

"I was really devastated, but the period of devastation was so short, because so shortly after that, the responses – my wife and I started to read these responses from literally all over the world of support and so, fortunately, the shame part didn’t last very long," he said.

FULL INTERVIEW: @GMA EXCLUSIVE -- "There's no job better than another...every job is worthwhile..." Actor Geoffrey Owens speaks out, responding to job shaming and backlash after a photo of him working at a grocery store was posted online: https://t.co/0wZJnpowI9pic.twitter.com/aNiG5fV2yf

It's not clear if Owens will accept the job offer from Perry, because he told Roberts on "GMA" that getting work from his recent publicity wouldn't feel right.

"I wouldn’t feel comfortable getting acting jobs from this event," he said. "I wouldn't mind getting auditions, I don't mind if people call me in to try out for things, due to what's happened, but I actually wouldn't feel comfortable (with) someone giving me a job because this happened. I want to get a job because I'm the right person for that job."

Before his interview concluded, Owens discussed what he found to be a silver lining in the unexpected spectacle.

"This business of my being this 'Cosby' guy who got shamed for working at Trader Joe's, that’s going to pass. ... But I hope what doesn’t pass is this idea ... this rethinking about what it means to work, the honor of the working person and the dignity of work," he said. "And, I hope that this period that we're in now, where we have a heightened sensitivity about that and a re-evaluation of what it means to work, and a re-evaluation of the idea that some jobs are better than others, because that’s actually not true.

"There is no job that's better than another job," he continued. "It might pay better, it might have better benefits, it might look better on a resume and on paper, but actually it’s not better. Every job is worthwhile and valuable, and if we have a kind of a rethinking about that because of what’s happened to me, that would be great. But no one should feel sorry for me, either from a positive or a negative perspective. I’ve had a great life, I've had a great career, and I’ve had a career that most actors would die for."

Cosby’s legacy was tarnished after more than 60 women accused him of sexual assault. He was convicted in April on three counts of aggravated indecent assault for drugging and molesting a woman at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004. The 81-year-old comedian has been sentenced to three to 10 years in prison. Matt Slocum, AP

No stereotypical stay-at-home mom, Phylicia Rashad's Clair Huxtable was quick to call attention to husband Cliff's foibles. Their differences were often aired, and settled, on the living room couch, or in the bedroom. NBC

Rashad will be seen in "Creed II" as Mary Anne Creed, alongside Michael B. Jordan. She also made a cameo in Drake's "In My Feelings" music video playing KeKe's protective mother, something she did well on "The Cosby Show." Manny Carabel, Getty Images

Cosby's hard-working, well-educated physician dad served as a role model for son Theo, played by Malcom-Jamal Warner, and started a national conversation about the importance of fathers, especially for African-American families. NBC

Cliff's relationships with the women in the household were often conflicted. He loved them unconditionally, but they sometimes baffled him with their life choices. Lisa Bonet's Denise Huxtable seemed particularly trying for dear old dad. NBC via Getty Images

Bonet starred in "The Cosby Show" spinoff "A Different World" for its first season, before leaving the show for personal reasons. Her recent credits include TV's "Ray Donovan." She is married to "Justice League" actor Jason Momoa and has three children, including "Big Little Lies" star Zoe Kravitz. Steve Granitz, WireImage

Owens has continued to act, appearing most recently on Fox's "Lucifer." A shopper spotted Owens bagging groceries at Trader Joe's in Clifton, N.J., recently, sparking backlash when Owens was "job shamed" by Fox News and the Daily Mail. A number of celebrities took to Twitter to commend Owens' hard work and say a job is a job, and is nothing to be ashamed of. Asbury Park Press

Bledsoe, left, starred in NBC's "Guys With Kids" sitcom (2012-2013). Pulliam continued to act, starring as Miranda Lucas-Payne on the TBS comedy "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" (2007–2012), but also ventured into reality television, appearing on "The Celebrity Apprentice Season 7" and "Celebrity Big Brother." Vivian Zink, NBC

Raven-Symone went on to become a Disney Channel star, starring in "That's So Raven." She has appeared in numerous movies, including "Dr. Dolittle," "The Cheetah Girls" and "College Road Trip." She was a host on "The View" before leaving to reprise her role as Raven Baxter on Disney's "Raven's Home" in 2016. Rich Fury, Getty Images